High-tech happy meals

Some McDonald's restaurants are about to provide a new treat with their combo meals: an hour of high-speed Internet access. Up to 10 McDonald's restaurants in Manhattan will offer the service first. Customers will be able to check their e-mail and stock charts while eating a hamburger.

The company hopes that the offer will attract business people and college students to the company's dining rooms. Estimates say more than 78 million people use high-speed wireless Internet access today.

McDonald's joins Starbucks and Borders bookstores in the ranks of chains rolling out wireless Internet technology, called WiFi. Hilton, Marriott, Sheraton, and Westin hotels are installing hundreds of high-speed access points in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany.